The Hehuan Sect Was Squeezed Dry for Ten Thousand Years, but It Became a Sacred Ground? - Chapter 31

Chapter 31: The Yimu Qing Emperor Cauldron! The Exquisite Artifact Spirit!

The 327 newly recruited disciples were settled in the Qinglian Sect. Due to the extremely small number of sect members, the division between inner and outer sects was abolished. The remaining six or seven female deacons at the Golden Core stage, along with the Grand Elder Xu Qingyao and the senior sister Nangong Ling, barely formed a teaching team to maintain the sect’s operations. As for the sect leader, Liu Ruyan, she only made appearances at important occasions and occasionally preached to maintain an air of mystery.

Compared to the established twelve sects, the Qinglian Sect was far inferior in terms of heritage. However, it was not without its advantages. With Liu Ruyan, the youngest Deity Transformation stage cultivator in the Great Xia, the sect had no shortage of eager merchants and forces seeking to curry favor and cooperate. The small number of disciples meant less competitive pressure, ensuring that each disciple had sufficient cultivation resources. While not as wealthy as the top sects, the Qinglian Sect offered abundant benefits to its members. Except for a few who had some complaints, the majority of the disciples were satisfied.

However, Liu Ruyan was well aware of the principle that one thrives in adversity and perishes in comfort. Shortly after these disciples joined the sect, she dropped a bombshell: a sect-wide competition would be held six months after their entry. To accommodate the new disciples, the competition would be divided into separate matches. Those who ranked high would not only receive rewards but also have the chance to be taken as personal disciples by the Grand Elder or even the sect leader. The temptation was immense! Instantly, a diligent and progressive atmosphere permeated the sect.

…

At this moment, in a disciple’s cave within the mountains, a young girl in a green robe sat cross-legged, her eyes gleaming as she watched the ancient bronze cauldron suspended before her, engulfed in spiritual flames. Wisps of medicinal fragrance wafted from it. She silently calculated the time. Calm as a maiden, swift as a hare! With quick hands, she flicked her fingers, drawing out two brownish pills from the cauldron. She changed her hand seals, and the residual spiritual flames enveloped the pills, completing the final refinement. Looking at the pills lying quietly in her palm, each marked with three distinct lines, the girl could hardly contain her excitement.

“Aunt Qing, look, I succeeded!” As soon as she spoke, the ancient cauldron emitted a deep, resonant hum. A translucent figure of a woman floated out from the cauldron, hovering in mid-air. She had long, green hair tied with a red thread at the ends. Her eyebrows were like distant mountains, her eyes like shallow glass. Her features resembled an unfolding ancient scroll. The woman’s gentle demeanor and the faint smile on her lips seemed to bridge any distance. Her light brown flowing dress wrapped around her mature figure, with several lines of mysterious ancient text on the hem, flowing with her movements, exuding a sense of solemnity through the ages. Beautiful? That was an understatement!

The woman, referred to as Aunt Qing, lowered her gaze to the girl who was proudly showing off her achievement, her eyes filled with tender affection. Her voice was like a distant echo in a valley. “Yes, perfect quality. Xiao Qin, you are truly the most talented alchemist I have ever seen.”

Praise made the girl, Zhou Qin, both proud and a little embarrassed. “Hmph, Aunt Qing, you always tease me. With your experience, the top prodigies you’ve seen must be as numerous as fish in a river.”

“But I truly have the highest hopes for you, Xiao Qin,” the green-haired woman said, reaching out to pat the girl’s head, though her hand passed through without any resistance. Despite feeling nothing, Zhou Qin still smiled brightly, as if she had truly been cared for by an elder.

Returning to normal, she looked up with eager anticipation. “Aunt Qing, how about it? Do you think the Yimu Qing Emperor Cauldron has been repaired a bit?”

The woman wanted to offer some comforting words of encouragement, but seeing Zhou Qin’s earnest gaze, she chose to be honest. “Compared to when it only produced ordinary quality pills, there has been a noticeable improvement. But in terms of overall repair, it’s still minimal.”

“Is that so…” Zhou Qin couldn’t help but mutter. “Isn’t there any other way to repair the cauldron?”

At this rate, it would take forever to fully restore it. The green-haired woman pondered for a moment. “There is.”

“What is it?” Zhou Qin immediately asked with excitement.

“Now that your damaged dantian is completely bound to the Yimu Qing Emperor Cauldron, if your dantian can be nourished, the cauldron can also be repaired to the same extent.”

“But…” She sighed softly, helplessly. “After the complete binding, your dantian is now at the same level as the cauldron. This means that unless you consume divine-level or even higher-quality heavenly treasures, nothing will have any effect.”

And in the world of cultivation, obtaining divine-level heavenly treasures was nothing but a pipe dream.

“Is that so…” The girl’s hopeful eyes dimmed instantly.

Seeing this, the green-haired woman quickly comforted her. “It’s alright. With the current level of repair of the Yimu Qing Emperor Cauldron, converted into talent, it’s already sufficient for now.”

“When your cultivation improves in the future, you can refine higher-quality pills, and the repair speed will increase, creating a virtuous cycle.”

Zhou Qin took a deep breath, calming her emotions, and nodded firmly. “I will work hard!”

That unremarkable, broken bronze cauldron was a serendipitous treasure she obtained in the family ancestral hall after her dantian was destroyed and her cultivation lost. At that time, the cauldron had shrunk to the size of a bowl and was casually used as an incense burner for the family’s ancestral tablets. Having become a cripple and lost her value to the family, Zhou Qin was completely abandoned. The family’s third elder, seeing her beauty, planned to marry her off to his mentally challenged grandson as a concubine, hoping to produce a descendant with exceptional talent.

On that day, Zhou Qin was sent to the family ancestral hall, where she was to serve the ancestors until her wedding. Filled with despair and helplessness, she accidentally knocked over the bronze cauldron while offering incense. Through a series of coincidences, her ruined dantian became bound to the cauldron. Only then did she realize the cauldron’s extraordinary nature.

The Yimu Qing Emperor Cauldron was a treasure used by the ancient Supreme Qing Emperor of the upper realm for alchemy. The Qing Emperor, a woman of unparalleled talent, was not only a top-tier warrior but also an unparalleled alchemist. The Yimu Qing Emperor Cauldron was her most cherished possession, capable of refining various divine pills by integrating all living beings and natural elements. After her death, the cauldron was fought over by countless immortals and eventually ended up in one of the three thousand lower realms. Its divine essence shattered, its quality degraded, and it endured the vicissitudes of time.

Now, the Yimu Qing Emperor Cauldron was even inferior to ordinary alchemy cauldrons. But a divine artifact is a divine artifact for a reason, possessing wonders that ordinary treasures cannot match. As long as it was used to refine pills, the Yimu Qing Emperor Cauldron could gradually repair itself until it fully restored to its supreme state. The bound dantian would also be optimized, eventually reaching the qualifications to become an immortal sovereign.

The green-haired woman before her was the artifact spirit of the Yimu Qing Emperor Cauldron, possessing countless ancient alchemy recipes and serving as her guide on the path of alchemy!

…